


Shindig

by agent85



Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Firefly Verse, Canon-Typical Violence, F/M, Fitzsimmons Week, Humor, Sexual Harassment, Swordfighting
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-09-17
Updated: 2015-09-17
Packaged: 2018-04-20 08:54:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,739
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4781330
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/agent85/pseuds/agent85
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Firefly AU. When Bobbi and Fitz go to a fancy Hydra shindig to track down a possible gifted, Fitz tries to defend Jemma's honor and ends up accidentally challenging Bakshi to a duel. </p><p>Really, it could happen to anybody.</p><p>For FitzSimmons Week Day 4: Satisfaction</p>
            </blockquote>





	Shindig

**Author's Note:**

> This is basically me copying and pasting FitzSimmons into the Firefly episode "Shindig." I'm afraid that I can't take credit for any of the best lines, since I stole them all.

The wine was excellent, the floating chandelier was beyond fabulous, the music was enchanting, and Jemma sighed in complete contentment. It really was the event of the season.

And it was especially wonderful that her dress (one she knew that May would classify as having "just the right amount of slink") was drawing every eye in the room.  

Beside her, Sunil seemed as pleased as punch. 

"They're all envious of me, you know," he said, sweeping her onto the dance floor, "half of them would cut my heart out for a dance with you."

"Only half?" she asked, giving a coy smile, "I must be losing my undefinable allure."

"Oh, not so, dear Jemma," Sunil countered, leaning in, "all of them wish they were in your bed."

Jemma's smile faded, but she looked around the room so he wouldn't notice.

"You can stay here with us, you know. I think you'll find that we have great use for your . . ." He surveyed the length of her. "Talents."

"Well, it would be nice to do more than molecular analysis on blind samples," she replied, keeping her smile in check. She focused on the music and the sounds around her, and on the people chatting by the buffet table while couples glided past her. There was so much life here, so many people enjoying the evening, and half the guests hadn't even arrived yet.

"Barbara Morse and escort," came the announcement from the door. Jemma's heart stopped.

_Bobbi?_

* * *

"Does this, uh," groaned Fitz, "do these trousers seem tight to you?" He tried to adjust his belt, but it was no use.

"Oh, come on, Fitz. It shows off your backside."

Fitz looked up at Bobbi with a gasp. "Excuse me? I'd appreciate it if you wouldn't discuss my . . . that area, thank you very much."

"Well," Bobbi replied, smirking, "you're here to make me look respectable. Now," she said looking around the room, "our target is a young man, late teens, dark hair."

"Yes, Donnie Gill.  _I know_ ," Fitz huffed. "I'm the one who actually met him, so I  _should_  be taking the lead on this one."

Bobbi blinked. "Yes sir, Agent Tight Pants."

Fitz gave an eye roll, but forgot to be cross when he caught sight of something across the room.

"Is that him, over there?"

Bobbi gave an eye roll of her own. "Fitz, that's the buffet table."

"But how can we be sure," posited Fitz with an innocent shrug, "until we question it?"

Fitz almost skipped his way towards what looked like mangoes and  _real_   _strawberries_ , but stopped short when the crowd seemed to part, and there she was.

* * *

He looked well, even if he was staring at her from across the room. The last time she saw him, he'd barely been able to stand, but even as she felt the pride swell in her chest, she couldn't help but wonder if he'd come all this way just to ruin everything.

Sunil seemed even more aware of Fitz's gaping (yes, it was gaping now), and he glanced at her from the corner of his eye.

"Old friend of yours?"

Simmons gulped. "Yes. My old lab partner, actually."

And before she could stop him, Sunil escorted her to Fitz's side. Simmons took a deep breath.

"Fitz!"

He looked up when she called, having ducked his head when they'd started towards him. Now, he looked like they caught him with his hand in the cookie jar.

"Simmons! It's uh, it's nice to see you."

"And you," she replied, giving him a smile and silently begging him to leave, "Fitz, this is Sunil Bakshi, my direct supervisor. Sunil, allow me to introduce you to Fitz."

"The pleasure's all mine, I'm sure," Sunil said as he shook Fitz's hand. He eyed Fitz up and down like he was sizing up an unsavory piece of meat. Fitz, on the other hand, grew pale as a sheet, and cleared his throat.

"Well, this is, uh, quite the party, huh? The, uh, the chandelier floats and everything."

She found a smile forming on her lips before she knew it, her first genuine smile of the evening, and this time, Sunil noticed.

"Yes, it's quite lovely. Now, if you'll excuse me, we must be going."

He grabbed Simmons by the hand and tugged her away with an alarming force. 

"Hey," Fitz called, "are you sure she  _wants_  to leave?"

The words were directed at her companion, but she wondered if it was meant for her.

"Excuse me," sneered Sunil, "but she's not here with you. She's mine."

Jemma was sure that she felt her stomach drop to the floor. She wasn't sure if she saw a flash of fear or anger in Fitz. Perhaps it was both.

"Yours?" He gulped. "She doesn't belong to you." He caught her eye for a moment before looking away. "She doesn't belong to anybody, and I'm sure she wouldn't want you handling her like that." His eyes flitted back to hers in a silent question, and she pursed her lips.

"She's my employee, she's on the clock, and she's looking for a promotion, so it doesn't matter how you dress her up, she's—"

Sunil was stopped by the force of Fitz's fist, which pummeled him the the jaw and, to Jemma's surprise, knocked him over. The party came to a crashing halt, and soon all eyes were staring at Fitz as he shook out his hand in obvious pain. Before he'd fully recovered, Sunil was on his feet again, and she was prepared to stop Sunil from returning the blow.

Instead, he smiled.

"I accept!"

"Brilliant," snarled Fitz, then he blinked. "Accept what?"

"I hope you're prepared, Mr. Fitz," he warned.

Just then, Mr. Turgeon came up from behind her and drew the attention of the crowd. "There has been a challenge!"

Fitz looked from Sunil, to Jemma, and then ultimately to Bobbi, who was instantly at his side.

"Are you talking about a fight?" he asked, "Because, I don't . . . I mean Bobbi is more of a . . ."

Jemma found herself rocketing forward to grab him by the arm.

"It's not a fist fight, Fitz."

"Well," he whispered back, "that's good. So, is it a robot battle, or, uh, trivial pursuit?"

"The duel," Mr. Turgeon continued, "will be met tomorrow at Triskellion Lake. If you require it, any gentleman here can give you use of a sword."

Fitz's mouth hung ajar. "Use of a sw-what?"

* * *

"Agh!"

Fitz rubbed at his backside, and Bobbi smiled.

"Do you know how to avoid that?"

Fitz rubbed the back of his neck. "Running a lot faster?"

She folded her arms and rolled her eyes at him. "No. You have to vary your attacks. You keep swinging from the shoulder."

"Well, it feels stronger that way," he said, demonstrating the move.

"But it's a lot slower. C'mon, Fitz. You understand the physics of this better than anyone. You need to fight with your head."

He looked at the blade in his hand with a frown. "Yeah, I do."

He was just about to ask her to clarify when the locked door twisted open, and a distressed Simmons came barging in.

"What are you doing here?"

He started to bring up his sword to defend himself, then thought better of it.

"I'm working, same as you," she sneered.

He looked to Bobbi for confirmation, but she was nowhere to be found. When his eyes returned to Simmons, he discovered her glaring at him.

"You're not supposed to be here, Fitz."

Fitz furrowed his brow. "Well, I was escorted here by your new mates, so it's not exactly like I had a choice in the matter.

"Oh, Fitz! That's not what I mean. You weren't supposed to be at the ball in the first place. You almost blew my cover!"

He felt his jaw drop as the gears starting turning. "Wait, cover? You mean, you haven't-"

"Defected? Of course not."

He blinked at her. "But, uh, Donnie Gill, he's a gifted now, and—"

"And who do you think told Coulson about Donnie in the first place!" She groaned. "I've spent two months gaining their trust, Fitz."

He closed his eyes them, pinching the bridge of his nose. "Yeah, two months and twelve days. I know." He took in a shaky breath. "Well, uh, if you really wanted me to, uh, I mean I was going to just get Donnie and go—"

"So, why didn't you?"

"You came up to me and then he . . . he disrespected you! And you know what, Jemma, I don't care if you  _are_  Hydra, you deserve better than that. Even if he is handsome and, powerful, and much better than . . . never mind." He took in another breath and found Jemma looking back at him with wide eyes. A silence fell over them as they stared at each other, and he wondered if she was as much at a loss for words as he was. "How'd this get so complicated?" he finally asked. 

At first, he thought she wouldn't have an answer, but she straightened her posture and flashed one of her best fake smiles. "Well, it's about to get a lot simpler. There's a back door. The desk clerk's a friend of mine; he'll let us out."

"Whoa, whoa," Fitz protested, waving his arms in front of him, "I'm not running off! I'm not afraid, Jemma."

"It doesn't matter if you're afraid or not; Bakshi's an expert swordsman."

"Oh, so it's Bakshi now? I thought you two were on a first-name basis."

She rolled her eyes at him. "I'm trying to get a promotion, Fitz. To gather intel."

"Well, I don't think any intel is worth getting his grimy hands all over you, Jemma." He looked down, unable to meet her eyes. "I know I'm not fighting for your hand, okay? You, uh, you made yourself very clear when you . . . left. But you should be able to . . . to be treated like a person instead of a thing, and that's . . . that's worth fighting for."

"And dying?" She folded her arms with a huff. "How's that going to solve anything?"

"Well, I don't plan on being the one who's dying. That's what I've got Bobbi for. And you, if you'll help me."

She raised an eyebrow. "Me?"

"You know the human body better than anyone. Are you saying you can't tell me how to win this?"

He watched as she looked from him, to his sword, then up at the ceiling. Eventually, she let out a sigh.

"Okay, fine." She walked over to the counter to grab a sword and point it at him. "Let's begin."

* * *

Triskellion Lake was actually a very pleasant place, and when Bakshi observed that it would be a very nice place to die in, Simmons had to laugh at his joke. She helped him out of his coat and draped it over her arm, then went to stand next to a frowning Bobbi.

"Do you think he has a chance?" asked Jemma. Bobbi answered with an expressionless glare.

Deep down, there was a part of her that knew a single night of training couldn't match a lifetime of practice. But she dared to hope, even as she watched Fitz hold the sword like a toy, even as she knew that Bakshi's death might ruin her entire mission.

"Come on now, Mr. Fitz," teased Bakshi, "I demand satisfaction."

Fitz answered by charging at Bakshi, who easily deflected the intended blow. Jemma winced. Then Bakshi attacked, and Fitz defended himself with a series of _clang_ s. When Fitz thrusted forward, he sliced the front of Bakshi's jacket, and looked very pleased with himself. But Jemma caught the gleam in Bakshi's eyes, and her stomach dropped.

"Seems like I'm the one getting satisfaction," said Fitz.

"He thinks he's doing well," observed Bobbi.

But he was clearly being toyed with, and the thought of it nauseated Jemma. She turned to Bobbi.

"Are you sure you can't just . . . step in?"

Bobbi shook her head. "This is something Fitz has to do for himself."

"But surely . . ."

Bobbi stopped Jemma with a glance.

"You've been gone a long time, Simmons. Fitz really needs a win right now. Besides, I thought you two were close. Why don't you have a little faith in him?"

If it was as simple as faith, Jemma was sure she would have it in spades. But this was a killer swinging a blade at an innocent. How could Fitz possibly survive, and what would she possibly do without him?

Fitz continued slashing at the air, occasionally coming close to Bakshi, but not close enough. When Fitz came in for another attack, Bakshi deflected it and swiped at Fitz's shoulder, making him yelp.

Jemma took a semi-conscious step towards him. "He's bleeding."

Bobbi put out a hand to stop her. "Don't break your cover. He'll be fine."

"How could you possibly think that?"

Jemma turned to look at Bobbi, who smirked. 

"Because he's fighting for you."

Before Jemma could process Bobbi's statement, Bakshi put his sword behind his back, springing an obvious trap that Fitz fell into immediately. When Fitz charged, Bakshi twisted his torso to allow his blade to pierce Fitz's side. Jemma had dissected dozens of corpses, but when she saw the blood staining Fitz's shirt, she thought she would faint.

It was then that Bakshi showed his true skill, attacking Fitz as the engineer tried to hold his blood in with one hand and fight with the other. It wasn't long before Bakshi forced Fitz's sword to the ground, Fitz kneeling along with it, as Bakshi stomped on the steel and broke the handle off Fitz's blade.

"Fitz!"

She shouldn't have cried out, but she did, and something happened to him when he looked at her. He turned back to Bakshi, who put the tip of his blade in the hollow of Fitz's neck."

"Sunil, wait!"

It was then that she stepped out of Bobbi's reach, with her hands outstretched in a placating gesture. She gulped, knowing the price she was about to pay, but realizing that she didn't care.

"I'll do anything you ask; just let him live."

Bakshi smiled at that, and Jemma could only imagine the filthy thoughts that were swirling in his head at the moment Fitz used the distraction to grab Bakshi's sword and punch him in the face. Before Bakshi could recover, Fitz grabbed his broken blade with his bare hands and launched it at Bakshi, sticking him in the chest. Bakshi fell with an anguished cry, and suddenly, Fitz was standing over Bakshi in victory.

The two men stared at each other in silence, neither daring to move, prompting Bobbi to step in.

"You have to finish it, Fitz," she urged. "It's a lifetime of humiliation for him if you don't."

Fitz frowned, keeping his eyes on the enemy. "I'm not a killer," he finally said, "and besides he'll get exactly what he deserves." He cocked his head at Bakshi. "Mercy is the mark of a great man," he announced. And when he couldn't seem to resist stabbing Bakshi in the ribs, he said, "I guess I'm just a good man." He stabbed him again. "Well, I'm alright."

When he dropped the sword and turned to Jemma, she was already racing toward him, and she supported his weight as his strength started to leave him. But it didn't stop her from reaching up to kiss him, as it seemed that nothing could. Fitz looked back at her, confused.

"What was that?"

Jemma shrugged. "You're alive."

It was all the explanation she had, but it must have been all he needed, because he made no qualms about her guiding him away from the battlefield.

"Jemma," Bakshi called after her. "Jemma!"

She made no notice of his plea, focusing instead on the man draped over her shoulder, and the stunning revelation that she could never lose him.

"These sword fights," he said, "I don't think I care for them."

Jemma couldn't stop her smile. "I would hope not."

"Mighty fine shindig, though."

She rolled her eyes at him as her heart filled with a supreme affection. She would never return to Hydra; they'd kill her if she tried. Better, then, to take Fitz back to wherever the bus was docked, and dress his wounds.

And maybe after that, she thought, she would try to figure out why she could still feel the imprint of his lips on hers.

**Author's Note:**

> I regularly post sneak peeks and general ramblings about my writing on [my tumblr](http://agent-85.tumblr.com/tagged/Writings%20of%20Agent%2085).


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